Manning’s presence makes for queasy ride on NFL’s QB carousel

FILE - In this Dec. 19, 2011 file photo, San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh, center, talks with quarterback Alex Smith (11) during the second quarter of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in San Francisco. In the Bay Area, they're beginning to think about the possibility of Jim Harbaugh coaching former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and believe it truly might happen. 49ers free agent quarterback Alex Smith traveled to Miami Sunday, March 18, 2012, to meet with the Dolphins. But if San Francisco doesn't sign Manning the 49ers will have some serious relationship-building to do with Smith. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)
— AP

FILE - In this Dec. 19, 2011 file photo, San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh, center, talks with quarterback Alex Smith (11) during the second quarter of an NFL football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in San Francisco. In the Bay Area, they're beginning to think about the possibility of Jim Harbaugh coaching former Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and believe it truly might happen. 49ers free agent quarterback Alex Smith traveled to Miami Sunday, March 18, 2012, to meet with the Dolphins. But if San Francisco doesn't sign Manning the 49ers will have some serious relationship-building to do with Smith. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)
/ AP

Alex Smith led the San Francisco 49ers into overtime with a trip to the Super Bowl at stake.

He is not, however, Peyton Manning.

Tim Tebow worked unconventional wonders with the Denver Broncos, elevating the fourth quarter of football games into a quasi-religious experience and guiding a rudderless team into the playoffs.

But he’s not Peyton Manning, either.

Since the National Football League includes only one Peyton Manning, and that Peyton Manning continues to deliberate about where he wants to play, those quarterbacks at risk of being replaced have been forced to face some unpleasant truths in recent days:

1) Loyalty is a one-way street in pro football, and that street is constantly under construction. Potholes are prevalent. Detours develop on short notice.

2) However well you do, however much you’ve done, there are people who get paid to find someone else who can do it better. One of them is your agent.

3) Peyton Manning is still out there, unsigned.

Alex Smith’s Sunday flight to Florida and his lengthy meetings with the Miami Dolphins are at least indicative of a bargaining impasse with the 49ers, probably more. Reportedly, the former Helix High star is already in negotiations with the Dolphins for a multiyear deal in the $8-million-per-annum range.

Despite his dramatic progress under 49ers first-year coach Jim Harbaugh, Smith had little choice but to implement a Plan B with San Francisco all agog about Manning.

“This is the NFL. I guess nothing surprises me anymore,” Smith told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on Sunday. “I never thought a year ago Manning would be a free agent, either. I’m never surprised by anything.”

Complicating Smith’s predicament is that his agent, Tom Condon, is also Manning’s agent. Or at least he was. Reports Smith may be seeking new representation remain unconfirmed, but Condon’s conflict of interest in this case is both self-evident and sadly familiar. When Manning’s brother, Eli, spurned the Chargers prior to the 2004 NFL Draft, he was also represented by Condon, who simultaneously represented Chargers incumbent Drew Brees.

No one can serve two masters, it seems, unless there are two commissions at stake.

Twelve days since the Colts released Manning to the marketplace, the situation remains fluid and, in spurts, frenetic. Smith’s plan to take his employment search to Seattle was made moot Sunday by the Seahawks’ signing of Matt Flynn, previously the ballyhooed backup in Green Bay. Former Jacksonville quarterback David Garrard is scheduled to meet with the Dolphins today.

For the moment, at least, the most promising quarterback openings are with those teams Peyton Manning has already rebuffed.

Having Manning on the market is like having Kate Upton show up at your prom. Suddenly, your date seems dreary and the alternatives significantly more seductive. You wonder if you have what it takes to trade up. You might risk glossing over the ripples of rejection — particularly the impact on a pre-existing relationship — and ruin a good thing as a result.

Worse, you might succeed in your pursuit only to discover Peyton Manning isn’t the Peyton Manning you imagine.

These are the risks the 49ers, Broncos and the Tennessee Titans have all assumed in chasing the free agent quarterback formerly of the Indianapolis Colts. They are banking on the Peyton Manning who won 109 out of 144 starts from 2001-2010, who has completed 399 NFL touchdown passes and who has compiled more than 31 miles of professional passing yardage.

They have assessed Manning’s numerous neck surgeries, his year’s absence from competition and his forthcoming 36th birthday and concluded that he still represents a shortcut to the Super Bowl.

This much may be true. Absent the expertise to evaluate Manning’s medical reports and lacking the cachet to attend his by-invitation throwing sessions, second-guessing the opinions of professionals is beyond silly. Yet inasmuch as Peyton Manning can play for only one team at a time, those teams that fail to land him could be facing considerable fallout.

Imagine the blowback in San Francisco should Manning sign with Denver or Tennessee after Smith signs with Miami. Imagine the fence-mending facing the Broncos if Manning signs elsewhere and Tim Tebow thinks himself disrespected.

Imagine the difficulty of replacing Peyton Manning if you never had him in the first place.